It’s Over

Well, it’s all over. The year 2005 ended on a bit of a sour note. The Dow finished the year in the negative. Today, the Dow dropped 67 points, and S&P 500 fell 6.13 points to finish at 1248.29. For the day, the S&P 500 lost 0.49% and the Buy List lost 0.90%. For December, the S&P 500 lost 0.1% and the Buy List fell 0.04%. For the fourth quarter, the S&P 500 gained 1.67% and our Buy List gained 4.68%. All in all, this has been a good time for us.
Earlier I mentioned how the market likes to find certain numbers on the last day. At today’s close, the S&P 500 rose by 3.001% for the year (not including dividends). Also, Bill Miller’s Legg Mason Value Trust beat the market for the 15th straight year, although it was close. The fund returned 6.02% beating the S&P 500 with dividends by just 0.59%. Manu Daftary of the Quaker Strategic Growth Fund kept his eight-year streak alive.
The broadest stock index, the Wilshire 5000, was up 4.56% for the year.
Here’s the big change of the last 12 months. At the end of 2004, the 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.22%, today it yields 4.39%. But the two-year Treasury jumped from 3.07% a year ago to 4.41% today. It pays you slightly more than the 10-year yield.

The information in this blog post represents my own opinions and does not contain a recommendation for any particular security or investment. I or my affiliates may hold positions or other interests in securities mentioned in the Blog, please see my Disclaimer page for my full disclaimer.

Named by CNN/Money as the best buy-and-hold blogger, Eddy Elfenbein is the editor of Crossing Wall Street. His free Buy List has beaten the S&P 500 seven times in the last eight years. (more)